Houston is well-known for its hurricane- and tropical storm-induced flooding issues that have devastated thousands of homes in recent years. Lately we’ve somehow added freezes to the list of flooding culprits, as frozen pipes burst in people’s houses all over town during Winter Storm Uri.
Every occurrence of one of these disasters means sudden and enormous surges in demand for home repair and rebuilding services.
As soon as possible, and while you’re lining up water damage remediation help, it’s imperative to get your rebuilding company in place.
If you wait, you could find yourself at the bottom of the list for contractors who are booked up for months, while your living situation is turned upside down.
As soon as the damaged areas are demolished, torn out, cleared of mold, and dried out, your water and storm damage remodelers at Legal Eagle Contractors can go to work restoring your home.
How We Help Restore Your Home
Although some water damage remediation companies offer reconstruction services, you’re better off calling a team like ours.
We are professional design-builders–just as you wouldn’t ask your plumber to do electrical wiring, you need dedicated craftspeople to do construction work.
We can help get your house even better than it was before the damage by doing either minor or major remodeling and repairs.
Minor work would include tasks such as repainting, hanging new drywall and insulation, putting down new flooring, and installing new cabinetry.
Major reconstruction work can be as extensive as you desire, but it typically includes tasks such as removing walls, installing new electrical outlets and wiring, and putting in new plumbing.
What to Do When Your House Gets Damaged
Before new construction can begin, the first priority after a bout of water damage is to get the wet stuff out.
While a water remediation company can help you, you shouldn’t count on being able to get anyone out to your house anytime soon.
And this process needs to start ASAP–mold can begin to develop in your home within as little as 24 hours, according to the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
During this period, the sooner you can find a reliable contractor, the better.
You may have to get on a waiting list. Don’t expect an exact quote either, as the extent of the tear-out needed will determine the cost of reconstruction.
Other things you can do:
- Contact your flood insurance provider, if you have one. Homeowner’s insurance likely will not cover any losses.
- For insurance purposes, document and photograph the water line and all damaged surfaces and contents, including flooring material for each room, types of countertops, and outdoor structures and items.
- Make sure the power is off to the home before entering and don’t switch the system back on until an electrician has inspected it. Outlets, fuse boxes, wiring, or circuit panels that have been underwater will need to be replaced.
- Pull up wet carpet by cutting it into 3-foot-wide strips with a utility knife, rolling it up, and putting it on the curb for trash pickup.
- Also put out wet furniture, clothes, toys, food, and other items that can’t be safely dried and disinfected. ‘When in doubt, throw it out.’
- Using an all-purpose or disinfecting cleaner, wash walls from top to bottom and rinse with clean water. Watered-down chlorine bleach can be used on nonmetallic, colorfast surfaces as a disinfectant after cleaning.
- Disinfect dishes and other items with soap and hot water. Soft plastic items can be cleaned with disinfecting wipes.
- Keep the air conditioning running as cold as possible, if you have power. Otherwise open the windows to keep air circulating.
We recommend not removing sheetrock or insulation, as you may remove too much and make repairs more complicated. Whatever you do, be sure to wear a respirator and gloves while working.
FAQs: Permits, Insurance Claims, and More
Maybe.
If you need…
- exterior doors or windows replaced
- electrical work
- plumbing work (except for installing sink faucets)
- walls moved
…you DO need a permit.
If you’re only…
- installing insulation, drywall, and wood trim
- tarping your roof
- replacing wood or metal fences
- replacing cabinets, countertops, and/or backsplash
- installing wallpaper tile in kitchens and/or bathrooms
- installing flooring such as wood, carpet, vinyl, or laminate
…you DON”T need a permit.
Probably not.
Generally speaking, the NFIP (National Flood Insurance Program) pays 50-60% of the real cost of rebuilding your home using a professional contractor. The program also caps the payout at $250,000 of building coverage.
LEC can help you negotiate with your adjuster to add work to the scope that the adjuster missed. We can also advise on other ways to help finance reconstruction work.
Find answers to more of your flooding questions here.
Beware Unscrupulous Contractors
It happens after every big storm: fly-by-night “contractors” come out of the woodwork and hoodwink desperate and exhausted homeowners into giving them money for work that’s either never performed, or is performed shoddily or even illegally.
Many of these self-proclaimed contractors arrive from out of town and don’t have a storefront address in Texas. That should be a big red flag that you should not pay them any money upfront!
They should have a local address that you can verify as having been theirs for at least a year prior to the storm.
If they were a legitimate, established business, they wouldn’t be going door-to-door looking for jobs either, so if that’s how you came across them, tell them to keep walking–it’s not worth the risk.
Our Contractor Test helps you identify reliable and trustworthy contractors.
Put Your Home’s Restoration in the Hands of Professionals
Does your water damage contractor know which type of paint is better for resisting mold growth in a tropical climate? (It’s water-based paint.)
Does he know the rules governing Houston flood plain construction?
Does he know how to repair a damaged moisture barrier between the wall studs and the brick?
Legal Eagle Contractors has been a fixture of the Houston construction community going on 40 years. Not only do we go through all the same severe weather events as our neighbors, we’ve helped countless families get their homes liveable again.
We are nationally recognized authorities on aging-in-place and universal design building, and reconstructing after a storm may be the perfect time to incorporate updates into your home, or simply bring outdated features up to code or up to date.
We are full-service contractors and ready to help you build back better!
